Construction of the Zimbabwe Energy Regulatory Authority (ZERA) Head Office got underway on the 9th of April 2018, following the official ground breaking ceremony conducted by the Minister of Energy and Power Development in Harare’s Mt Pleasant Business Park.

The double-storey building, valued at $13million, is set to create over 200 jobs during its construction period of 18 months.

ZERA’s Chief Executive Officer Dr. Engineer Gloria Magombo said the building is a product of the best design as adjudicated by a team of judges and experts drawn from the environmental, engineering and architectural fields.

“The work for the construction of this building commenced in 2015 when Zimbabwe Energy Regulatory Authority (ZERA) held an architectural design competition for its new office building through the Institute of Architects,” said Eng. Gloria Magombo during ZERA’s ground breaking ceremony.

“Bids for the project were received from reputable firms including tertiary institutions such as NUST’s Department of Architectural Design. The competition was won by Studio Arts whose design was considered most responsive by the panel of judges.”

The ZERA building will accommodate the current staff of 60 and has a provision to cater for an increase in staff compliment from 60 to 90.

“Apart from the office accommodation, the building will have an auditorium to sit 60 people for the Authority’s stakeholder workshops and consultations and hearings, fitness centre and a canteen for staff and a separate outbuilding with a chemical laboratory,” stated Engineer Magombo.

In a speech read on his behalf, the Guest of Honour, Ambassador S. K. Moyo, Minister of Energy and Power Development applauded the project, which he said is an embodiment of energy efficiency.

“This office building will serve as a model of green buildings, encompassing energy efficiency and deployment of renewable energy. The building, whose ground we are breaking today will be broadly self-sustaining in terms of energy. It will have a solar PV rooftop that will generate power for lighting, office operations, refrigeration and powering computers and other appliances,” said Ambassador Moyo.

The design of the ZERA Head Office building reflects a green concept and aims at a net zero emission. The office will have a solar PV capacity of about 60kW, solar water heaters sufficient to heat 1,500 litres of water per day and architecture that takes advantage of natural lighting. The water feature, which resembles a hydro power plant, will serve to provide cooling required for the air conditioning system.

The ground-breaking ceremony was attended by captains of industry, commerce, farmers, fuel operators, power suppliers, mining houses and consumer representatives.